Is it possible to get ringworm in your eye?

Question

I'm a personal care attendant for a wheelchair-bound 23 yr old girl and one of the other attendant's was diagnosed with ringworm. She claims it's in her eye now. Is that possible?

Answer 1

It is probably not a ringworm in the typical sense. Ringworm is a fungus. What the attendant has is may be a nematode of the eye and are sometimes called eyeworms. These are most common in developing countries, but I had a friend that was diagnosed with one. Long term infection can result in loss of vision. But, I have never heard of ringworm affecting the eye.